Tanneries generate considerable quantities of sludge, shavings, trimmings, hair, buffing dusts and other general wastes and can consist of up to 70% of hide weight processed. Thermal conversion technologies by virtue of chemically reducing conditions, provides a viable alternative thermal treatment for tannery wastes, especially for chrome containing materials, and generates a chrome (III) containing ash. This ash has significant commercial value as it can be reconstituted.
All of the wastes generated by the tannery can be gasified following pre-treatment methods such as maceration, drying and subsequent densification or briquetting. A combined drying and gasification process could eliminate solid waste, whilst providing a combustible gas as a tax-exempt renewable energy source, which the tannery can directly reuse. Gasification trials have illustrated that up to 70% of the intrinsic energy value of the wastes currently disposed can be recovered as “synthesis gas” energy.
Gasification technology has the potential to provide significant cost benefits in terms of power generation and waste disposal, and increase sustainability within the leather industry. The gasification process converts any carbon-containing material into a combustible gas comprised primarily of carbon monoxide, hydrogen and methane, which can be used as a fuel to generate electricity and heat.
A wide range of tannery wastes can be macerated, flash dried, densified and gasified to generate a clean syngas for reuse in boilers or other Combined Heat and Power systems. As a result up to 70% of the intrinsic energy value of the waste can be recovered as syngas, with up to 60% of this being surplus to process drying requirements so can be recovered for on-site boiler or thermal energy recovery uses.
A proprietary technology has been in commercial operation at a tanyard on the West Coast of Norway since mid 2001. The process employs gasification-and-plasma-cracking and offer the capability of turning the tannery waste problem to a valorising source that may add values to the plant owner in terms of excessive energy and ferrochrome, a harmless alloy that is widely used by the metallurgical industry. The process leaves no ashes but a non-leaching slag that is useful for civil engineering works, and, hence, no residues for landfill disposal
The plastic problem is always a big one and will continue afflicting many parts of the world. Plastics fill our rivers, lands, and even oceans. It is having a great impact on our lives and even affecting marine life.
The single-use of plastic is bad, we should always strive to recycle or avoid them altogether. Unfortunately, when you go camping, you will have very few options. It may not be easy to avoid plastics. Luckily, there are things you can do to reduce plastics consumption.
The best camping site will be an off-grid location situated in a remote area. Obviously, you will not have a designated place where to dispose of the plastic bags. Here are 10 ways to reduce plastic waste while camping
1. Pre-Plan Your Trip
If you do not plan in advance, it is easy to get trapped. You will end up picking plastic and paper plates. The results will be creating unnecessary plastic waste. Pre-planning helps you to get organized.
If you are tech-savvy, you may use an app to help you plan. If the campsite has Wi-Fi, it will make things better for you. It will allow you to utilize your phone. Also, plan to shop for groceries in bulk. This way, you will avoid the small plastic container.
Instead, you will have the foods packed in big containers that can be recycled and reused. It reduces the number of plastics you carry to the camping site.
If you will prepare some of the meals at home, pack them in reusable containers. It allows you to easily dispose of some of the plastics you carried from the grocery.
2. Store Food Wisely
You don’t need to pack the food in sandwich bags. Instead, use bowls, food coolers and mess kits. These items can be used to pack food and could be reused multiple times. Using them ensures that you have enough food throughout your camping trip.
Also, it guarantees to keep the camping environment free from plastics. Packing glass and silver cutleries may look cumbersome when going on a camping trip. But, it is the only way to ensure that your camping environment is plastic-free.
So, ensure you shop for enough sporks, and mess kits beforehand. It will help you reduce the plastics you carry to your camping site. Mess kits could be the best option when you go camping. You can use them to store the food and put them to multiple other uses.
However, if you are going to a bear trail, all your items should be bear proof. A traditional storage won’t work. You must use a bear canister to store foods.
However, to keep the foods in good shape in warm weather, you must have the best bear proof coolers from IBC7 Outdoors. Bears are very sensitive to smell. Hence, you must plan wisely.
3. Pick Simple Foods
You will get involved in so many activities while in the camp. So, it requires that you carefully select the dishes to prepare. Thus, picking on simple foods could help to save your time. It greatly reduces the plastics you will need to deal with.
Some of the foods you may consider are:
Dehydrated Foods
The foods are easy to pack and require little cooking. Besides, they are nutritious, and you will not need to worry about flavor. If you have challenges in cooking food, they are among the options you may need to consider. For these we actually recommend some pouches that protect from oxygenation like these.
Nuts, Trail Mix and Bars
They make an enjoyable camping snack. They are easy to make and can be packed in renewable containers. Packing these foods in mess kits reduces the need to carry unnecessary camping bags.
Dried Fruits and Beef Jerky
They contain protein and are the best option if you are looking forward to something to reduce hunger pangs quickly. They are easy to pack in containers and may not require the use of plastic bag.
4. Use Safe Plastic Bags
Buying reusable oversized BPA free plastic containers will reduce the plastic bags and containers to carry. Besides, the BPA free bags can easily be packed transported and reused. They are easy to clean and reused.
5. Rubbish Disposal Point
By organizing a rubbish disposal point, you reduce sending wastes to a landfill. You can do this by setting aside a few specialized vessels to collect plastics and other waste products. If you are camping in a remote location, be proactive if the bin service is not available.
You may sort this out by selecting an ideal place where all the wastes and plastics can be stored. It allows you to organize to dispose of the plastics in a designated area. But as you do this, ensure that it doesn’t lead to an unpleasant odor.
Also, don’t let them overstay to attract flies, rodents, and other unwanted animals. Later, the litter must be collected packed and taken to the nearest collection point. If no such a point exists, take it home.
6. Store Dehydrated Food in Mess Kit
If you buy dehydrated food packed in a paper bag, portion them in the mess kit. This should be done at home to avoid carrying unnecessary plastics to the camping site.
To preserve the food, you will need to boil some water and pour it into the mess kit. The content should then be shut with a lid. It will rehydrate the food and will be ready to be prepared for lunch or dinner.
7. Prepare Trail Snacks
Energy snacks can make great snacks when you are on the trail. But they are always packed in plastic bags which create an eyesore if disposed carelessly.
So, instead of buying snacks that are already packaged in plastic bags, make some at home. They are better compared to the ready-made snacks that come packaged in the sandwich bag.
8. The Bamboo Mess Kit
Having a bamboo mess kit should be encouraged. It reduces the number of plastic bags you are likely to carry to the camp. It is heavier than the mess kit, but it saves you from taking plastics to the camping site.
9. Bring Your Mess Kits
When going to the grocery or your local farmer, make it a habit to carry your own mess kits. Let the vendor pack whatever you buy in the kits.
It helps you to avoid carrying home plastic bags that would be difficult to dispose of. It also reduces plastic waste that you will carry to your camping site.
10. Carry Reusable Items
Having a reusable water bottle is essential. Choose only environmentally friendly bottles. It will save you from the need to buy water bottles that are always laced with microplastics.
Many manufacturers are replacing plastic drinking straws with titanium.
Consider reusable containers made from stainless steel. They are sustainable and will allow you to enjoy your outdoor adventures. Double-walled stainless-steel bottles are the best. They can keep your drinks either hot or cold.
That aside, carrying reusable conditioners and shampoo when on a camping trip is a great idea. The reusable conditioner bars and shampoos do not contain carcinogenic chemicals.
Also, the conditioner bars and shampoos last for long. It saves the environment from plastics associated with bottle shampoo.
Conclusion
It feels daunting and inconveniencing to limit the number of plastic bags you use during camping trips. But if you remain consistent, it can make a huge difference. It keeps the environment clean and reduces pollution.
When people think of waste management, gene editing probably does not come to most people’s minds. Yet the innovative CRISPR genome modification technology fits well within the confines of managing pollution and waste on the planet. In particular, scientists are looking at how CRISPR technology can help with bioremediation, or pollutant neutralization.
Why Neutralize Pollutants?
The planet is in dire need of help as the negative impact of climate change hovers on the horizon. One of the ways that researchers are revolutionizing waste management and environmentalism is by neutralizing the pollutants that are taking up space in our landfills and oceans.
Scientists have noticed that certain organisms are particularly good at removing toxins from pollutants while others have the advantage of immobilizing toxins. Researchers are connecting the dots in order to figure out how CRISPR can help make these processes more efficient.
CRISPR-Aided Bioremediation
While it is great that scientists have discovered microorganisms that can metabolize pollutants and produce less toxic matter, what if those properties could be expanded?
CRISPR researchers are trying to do just that by using genetic editing to transfer more advantageous genes to other organisms, thus giving them even more power over toxic pollutants. This would speed up the process of natural bioremediation techniques without adding high costs and dangers.
An Edge Over Traditional Techniques
Using CRISPR technology, especially the promising CRISPR/Cas9 lentiviral system, will not only speed up the process but it will do a better job than traditional methods of bioremediation. By using the gene editing technique, scientists can create more chemically superior microorganisms that have more advantageous enzymes. That results in better neutrality of harmful pollutants in the planet’s soil and oceans. In turn, this also ramps up molecular biodiversity, which improves the cleanup process.
Speaking of molecules, the CRISPR method targets different molecular processes within a microorganism’s cells, either to regulate an existing gene or to create an entirely new one. When looking at a particular gene, scientists analyze its ability to target pollutants as well as its process for remediation.
Enhancing Bioremediation with CRISPR
Experts need to keep several aspects in mind when improving the abilities of a remediating organism and ramping up its efficiency. First of all, they need to look at the molecular pathways that lead an organism to remediate or neutralize a pollutant. Are there changes or improvements scientists that can make to these pathways? What can they add or take away?
They do a similar thing with the organism’s enzymes. Next comes bioprocessing and biosensor development, which allows scientists to test the microbial cells for chemical testing and removal efficiency.
Removing Harmful Pollutants
Take mercury, for example, which is a metal that is harmful to the planet as well as those who live on it. The E. coli bacteria has a removal efficiency of 96 when it comes to eradicating mercury.
Scientists can take that Hg2 gene and transporter and perhaps transport it to another microorganism that can metabolize and neutralize another type of pollutant. Researchers continue to look at how this technique can help us clean up the growing number of pollutants in the environment.
It is not just microorganisms that they’re working on, either. Genetic manipulation in plants is another exciting endeavor that could help out in the bioremediation field. By looking at the detoxification processes in certain plants, scientists are trying to figure out how to use CRISPR technology to amp up bioremediation or, rather, phytoremediation efforts.
Some human genes could be especially useful to certain plants that can target heavy metals in the soil. Whether they enhance existing plant species or generate completely new ones, this is an exciting development in remediation efforts against pollutants.
f your Sydney household, garage, shed or other shelter area has run out of room to store clutter it may be time to hire a rubbish removal team. Placing piles of garbage around your home or workplace is not only unsightly, but it could also be hazardous, so say goodbye to waste and say hello to the professionals!
Home Renovations
Rubbish is a part of life, yet when it accumulates it can be an absolute nightmare. It takes up space and can be hard to keep clean – fortunately, there is help available. You can call rubbish removal services like www.ridly.com.au, which will collect and dispose of your waste properly. Plus recycle any items they can into new products – making a positive contribution towards our environment!
Lessees are responsible for maintaining an orderly environment within and beyond its premises at their own expense, including removal of all debris such as ashes, garbage, excelsior, straw, and other refuse. No materials shall be burned on the lessee’s premises except in incinerators with structures, designs and capacities approved by the lessor – so getting someone to haul that stuff away is a huge deal.
As soon as you start renovating, waste can start piling up quickly. There are services that offer to clear away both green waste and general rubbish from your property while renovating, in addition to applying for CDCs or DAs, obtaining structural certifications, providing advice about materials and fittings, planning your site layout accordingly and arranging tradesmen before handover is completed.
Front Nature Strip Clearances
The front nature strip is another component of urban landscapes, creating an outdoor “green space” between roads, footpaths, and properties. Residents can use it to improve streetscape aesthetics and increase property values while contributing to neighbourhood security. While local authorities are responsible for maintaining footpath areas such as “crown land”, which often forms part of nature strips – residents themselves must take responsibility for maintaining “crown land”.
Most homeowners mow their lawns, while some go the extra step and plant trees, garden plants (like succulents or agapanthus) or verge gardens to add greenery along their curb. Although this trend has been around for some time now, more households across Sydney are embracing their curb side greenery than ever before.
Not every city allows planting on nature strips without first obtaining a permit; regulations vary greatly between municipalities. Some council does not permit any planting at all while others restrict height or require certain kinds of plants.
Councils typically do not permit trees to be cut back or removed from front nature strips without prior approval from service providers in case of emergency, while also mandating that at all times at least 1.5m clear width must remain on footpaths for pedestrian safety.
Under federal law, it is unlawful to store waste or rubbish on nature strips without prior permission from your local council – this includes placing skip-style bins there. Should this occur, fines could apply and could even lead to arrest charges being laid against you.
While most residents who garden on their nature strips do it out of kindness, others have more commercial motives in mind when gardening their nature strips. This is particularly true of business owners who see the potential for increasing profits through growing produce in front nature strips. While gardening on nature strips has its advantages, you should keep in mind the effects on nearby residents and the environment, as well as any costs involved – gardening on a nature strip may prove costly for some individuals.
Green Waste Removal
Green waste can quickly become an eyesore if left accumulating in the backyard, common outdoor areas of apartments or at work. Not only is it unattractive to look at, but it also serves as a breeding ground for pests and diseases – prompt and efficient green waste removal is vital to ensure an aesthetically pleasing backyard, shared outdoor area or office space.
Instead of dumping green waste in landfills, consider recycling it instead with the help of a green rubbish removal service that uses composting or biogas plants to recycle it into natural gas production and nutrient-rich soil for gardens and lawns.
Landfills should not be chosen as a way of disposing of green waste as this can have serious repercussions for the environment. When this waste enters landfills, it undergoes anaerobic decomposition which produces methane emissions at 25 times greater potency than carbon dioxide, contributing significantly to global warming.
An alternative method of recycling green waste is creating mulch and garden compost from it, which can then be used in your backyard to enrich and improve soil quality or spread across public spaces such as parks to help plants and trees in those spaces grow faster and healthier.
Recycling
Australia’s recycling industry has undergone dramatic change over time. Older Australians may recall bottle drives, paper and cardboard recycling collection bins and trips to scrap metal merchants to sell steel cans. Today, mixed recycling practices produce much cleaner waste streams that require far less sorting at recycling plants, saving space in landfills while being beneficial for the environment.
Australian local councils manage around 26% of domestic waste collected through curb side collection services each year, collecting 9.7 million tons at curb side to be processed at Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs), before transporting recyclable materials back for recycling at plants in Australia or overseas.
To transition to a zero-waste lifestyle, you should always recycle.
Recycled materials that cannot be recycled are sent to a landfill. Landfills come in all shapes and sizes; typically lined with clay, rock, and sand to prevent leakage and contamination, they must also meet environmental regulations while being constantly monitored and maintained to comply with state government requirements – this expensive operation must be covered either locally by councils owning them, or state governments where they’re situated.
Each city has different recycling regulations, but there are some general guidelines you should abide by when recycling. Ensure you place only acceptable items into your recycling bin as contamination from unwanted material could ruin an otherwise efficient batch of recycling. It can be easy to get confused over this matter so if in doubt about what belongs where, speak to your local council.
Hazardous waste can be extremely harmful and often includes products like motor oil, brake fluid, kerosene, mineral turpentine, insecticides, and herbicides as well as batteries, compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), oven cleaners and pool chemicals.
Hazardous waste is typically generated by large companies like manufacturing industries and construction practices; however, it may also come from home disposal of old electronics equipment or furniture or paint. Proper disposal is important to preserve human, animal, and plant life; there are specialist disposal companies that specialize in handling this material, but it is still best practice to avoid excess waste in the first place.
Disposal
Australian waste disposal can be a complex matter. While recycling remains an integral component of waste management, landfills remain the preferred destination for 40% of Australia’s trash each year. Landfills range from small trench-based facilities that cannot hold more than 1000 tons annually up to large, well-planned facilities capable of accommodating over 100,000 tons annually.
As I said before, landfills aren’t solely used to store household waste; much of Australia’s landfill waste originates from large companies and construction practices, often classified as hazardous and requiring special disposal facilities.
Landfills were once the go-to solution, but as new technologies emerge more and more of this material is diverted away from traditional disposal methods; one such technology is anaerobic digestion – which turns organic waste into energy while decreasing methane emissions into the atmosphere.
Waste management doesn’t just fall to industry alone – Australians must also play their part. People frequently place items in the wrong bin; one study discovered that 88% of Australians don’t know where the recycling bin goes.
The recycling industry has become more complex so has the need for sorting different types of paper, glass, plastics, and metals into categories. With curb side collection becoming popular and centralized facilities established, councils began finding it less economically sound to separate waste at curb side – it became cheaper and more efficient to send mixed containers directly to these facilities where materials could be easily and economically separated.
The quality of recycled products has declined and there are now concerns regarding their performance in the marketplace. Thankfully, efforts are being taken to remedy this situation such as banning the export of e-waste and setting an ambitious target of decreasing waste generation by 10 per cent per person by 2030.
Animal manure is a valuable source of nutrients and renewable energy. However, most of the manure is collected in lagoons or left to decompose in the open which pose a significant environmental hazard. The air pollutants emitted from manure include methane, nitrous oxide, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, volatile organic compounds and particulate matter, which can cause serious environmental concerns and health problems.
In the past, livestock waste was recovered and sold as a fertilizer or simply spread onto agricultural land. The introduction of tighter environmental controls on odour and water pollution means that some form of waste management is necessary, which provides further incentives for biomass-to-energy conversion.
Anaerobic digestion is a unique treatment solution for animal manure management as it can deliver positive benefits, including renewable energy, water pollution, and air emissions. Anaerobic digestion of animal manure is gaining popularity as a means to protect the environment and to recycle materials efficiently into the farming systems.
Waste-to-Energy (WTE) plants, based on anaerobic digestion of cow manure, are highly efficient in harnessing the untapped renewable energy potential of organic waste by converting the biodegradable fraction of the waste into high calorific value gases.
The establishment of anaerobic digestion systems for livestock manure stabilization and energy production has accelerated substantially in the past several years. There are thousands of digesters operating at commercial livestock facilities in Europe, United States, Asia and elsewhere. which are generating clean energy and fuel. Many of the projects that generate electricity also capture waste heat for various in-house requirements.
Important Factors
The main factors that influence biogas production from livestock manure are pH and temperature of the feedstock. It is well established that a biogas plant works optimally at neutral pH level and mesophilic temperature of around 35o C. Carbon-nitrogen ratio of the feed material is also an important factor and should be in the range of 20:1 to 30:1. Animal manure has a carbon – nitrogen ratio of 25:1 and is considered ideal for maximum gas production.
Solid concentration in the feed material is also crucial to ensure sufficient gas production, as well as easy mixing and handling. Hydraulic retention time (HRT) is the most important factor in determining the volume of the digester which in turn determines the cost of the plant; the larger the retention period, higher the construction cost.
Description of Biogas Plant Working on Animal Manure
The fresh animal manure is stored in a collection tank before its processing to the homogenization tank which is equipped with a mixer to facilitate homogenization of the waste stream. The uniformly mixed waste is passed through a macerator to obtain uniform particle size of 5-10 mm and pumped into suitable-capacity anaerobic digesters where stabilization of organic waste takes place.
In anaerobic digestion, organic material is converted to biogas by a series of bacteria groups into methane and carbon dioxide. The majority of commercially operating digesters are plug flow and complete-mix reactors operating at mesophilic temperatures. The type of digester used varies with the consistency and solids content of the feedstock, with capital investment factors and with the primary purpose of digestion.
Biogas contain significant amount of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas which needs to be stripped off due to its highly corrosive nature. The removal of H2S takes place in a biological desulphurization unit in which a limited quantity of air is added to biogas in the presence of specialized aerobic bacteria which oxidizes H2S into elemental sulfur.
Biogas can be used as domestic cooking, industrial heating, combined heat and power (CHP) generation as well as a vehicle fuel. The digested substrate is passed through screw presses for dewatering and then subjected to solar drying and conditioning to give high-quality organic fertilizer.
Saudi Arabia has been witnessing rapid industrialization, high population growth rate and fast urbanization which have resulted in increased levels of pollution and waste. Solid waste management is becoming a big challenge for the government and local bodies with each passing day. With population of around 35 million, Saudi Arabia generates more than 15 million tons of solid waste per year. The per capita waste generation is estimated at 1.5 to 1.8 kg per person per day.
Solid waste generation in the three largest cities – Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam – exceeds 6 million tons per annum which gives an indication of the magnitude of the problem faced by civic bodies. More than 75 percent of the population is concentrated in urban areas which make it necessary for the government to initiate measures to improve recycling and waste management scenario in the country.
In Saudi Arabia, municipal solid waste is collected from individual or community bins and disposed of in landfills or dumpsites. Saudi waste management system is characterized by lack of waste disposal and tipping fees. Recycling, reuse and energy recovery is still at an early stage, although they are getting increased attention. Waste sorting and recycling are driven by an active informal sector. Recycling rate ranges from 10-15%, mainly due to the presence of the informal sector which extracts paper, metals and plastics from municipal waste.
Recycling activities are mostly manual and labor intensive. Composting is also gaining increased interest in Saudi Arabia due to the high organic content of MSW (around 40%). Efforts are also underway to deploy waste-to-energy technologies in the Kingdom. All activities related to waste management are coordinated and financed by the government.
The Saudi government is aware of the critical demand for waste management solutions, and is investing heavily in solving this problem. The 2017 national budget allocated SR 54 billion for the municipal services sector, which includes water drainage and waste disposal. The Saudi government is making concerted efforts to improve recycling and waste disposal activities. Saudi visa for qualified waste management professionals will also go a long way in improving waste management situation in the country.
Cities around the world produce huge quantity of municipal wastewater (or sewage) which represents a serious problem due to its high treatment costs and risk to environment, human health and marine life. Sewage generation is bound to increase at rapid rates due to increase in number and size of urban habitats and growing industrialization.
An attractive disposal method for sewage sludge is to use it as alternative fuel source in cement industry. The resultant ash is incorporated in the cement matrix. Infact, several European countries, like Germany and Switzerland, have already started adopting this practice for sewage sludge management. Sewage sludge has relatively high net calorific value of 10-20 MJ/kg as well as lower carbon dioxide emissions factor compared to coal when treated in a cement kiln.
Use of sludge in cement kilns can also tackle the problem of safe and eco-friendly disposal of sewage sludge. The cement industry accounts for almost 5 percent of anthropogenic CO2 emissions worldwide. Treating municipal wastes in cement kilns can reduce industry’s reliance on fossil fuels and decrease greenhouse gas emissions.
The use of sewage sludge as alternative fuel in clinker production is one of the most sustainable option for sludge waste management. Due to the high temperature in the kiln the organic content of the sewage sludge will be completely destroyed. The sludge minerals will be bound in the clinker after the burning process. The calorific value of sewage sludge depends on the organic content and on the moisture content of the sludge. Dried sewage sludge with high organic content possesses a high calorific value. Waste coming out of sewage sludge treatment processes has a minor role as raw material substitute, due to their chemical composition.
The dried municipal sewage sludge has organic material content (ca. 40 – 45 wt %), therefore the use of this alternative fuel in clinker production will save fossil CO2 emissions. According to IPCC default of solid biomass fuel, the dried sewage sludge CO2 emission factor is 110 kg CO2/GJ without consideration of biogenic content. The usage of municipal sewage sludge as fuel supports the saving of fossil fuel emission.
Sludge is usually treated before disposal to reduce water content, fermentation propensity and pathogens by making use of treatment processes like thickening, dewatering, stabilisation, disinfection and thermal drying. The sludge may undergo one or several treatments resulting in a dry solid alternative fuel of a low to medium energy content that can be used in cement industry.
The use of sewage sludge as alternative fuel is a common practice in cement plants around the world, Europe in particular. It could be an attractive business proposition for wastewater treatment plant operators and cement industry to work together to tackle the problem of sewage sludge disposal, and high energy requirements and GHGs emissions from the cement industry.
Waste management is a challenging issue for the Sultanate of Oman due to high waste generation rates and scarcity of disposal sites. With population of almost 3 million inhabitants, the country produced about 1.6 million tons of solid waste in 2010. The per capita waste generation is more than 1.5 kg per day, among the highest worldwide.
Solid waste in Oman is characterized by very high percentage of recyclables, primarily paper (26%), plastics (12%), metals (11%) and glass (5%). However the country is yet to realize the recycling potential of its municipal waste stream. Most of the solid waste is sent to authorized and unauthorized dumpsites for disposal which is creating environment and health issues. There are several dumpsites which are located in the midst of residential areas or close to catchment areas of private and public drinking water bodies.
Solid waste management scenario in marked by lack of collection and disposal facilities. Solid waste, industrial waste, e-wastes etc are deposited in very large number of landfills scattered across the country. Oman has around 350 landfills/dumpsites which are managed by municipalities. In addition, there are numerous unauthorized dumpsites in Oman where all sorts of wastes are recklessly dumped.
Al Amerat landfill is the first engineered sanitary landfill in Oman which began its operations in early 2011. The landfill site, spread over an area of 9.6 hectares, consists of 5 cells with a total capacity of 10 million m3 of solid waste and spread over an area of over 9.6 hectares. Each cell has 16 shafts to take care of leachate (contaminated wastewater). All the shafts are interconnected, and will help in moving leachate to the leachate pump. The project is part of the government’s initiatives to tackle solid waste in a scientific and environment-friendly manner. Being the first of its kind, Al Amerat sanitary landfill is expected to be an example for the future solid waste management projects in the country.
Solid waste management is among the top priorities of Oman government which has chalked out a robust strategy to resolve waste management problem in the Sultanate. The country is striving to establish engineered landfills, waste transfer stations, recycling projects and waste-to-energy facilities in different parts of the country.
Modern MSW management facilities are under planning in several wilayat, especially Muscat and Salalah. The new landfills will eventually pave the way for closure of authorized and unauthorized garbage dumps around the country. However investments totaling Omani Rial 2.5 billion are required to put this waste management strategy into place.
The state-owned Oman Environment Services Holding Company (OESHCO), which is responsible for waste management projects in Oman, has recently started the tendering process for eight important projects. OESHCO has invited tenders from specialised companies for an engineered landfill and material recovery facility in Barka, apart from advisory services for 29 transfer stations and a couple of tenders for waste management services in the upcoming Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Duqm, among others. Among the top priorities is that development of Barka engineered landfill as the existing Barka waste disposal site, which serve entire wilayat and other neighbouring wilayats in south Batinah governorate, is plagued by environmental and public health issues.
With population of approximately 2.1 million, waste management is one of the most serious challenges confronting the local authorities. The daily solid waste generation across Gaza is more than 1300 tons which is characterized by per capita waste generation of 0.35 to 1.0 kg. Scarcity of waste disposal sites coupled with huge increase in waste generation is leading to serious environmental and human health impacts on the population.
The severity of the crisis is a direct consequence of continuing blockade by Israeli Occupation Forces and lack of financial assistance from international donor. Israeli Occupation Forces deliberately destroyed most of the sewage infrastructure in the Gaza Strip, during 2008-2009 Gaza War inflicting heavy damage to sewage pipes, water tanks, wastewater treatment plants etc.
There are three landfills in Gaza Strip – one each in southern and central part of Gaza and one in Gaza governorate. In addition, there are numerous unregulated dumpsites scattered across rural and urban areas which are not fenced, lined or monitored. Around 52% of the MSW stream is made up of organic wastes.
Domestic, industrial and medical wastes are often dumped near cities and villages or burned and disposed of in unregulated disposal sites which cause soil, air and water pollution, leading to health hazards and ecological damage. The physical damage caused to Gaza’s infrastructure by repeated Israeli aggression has been a major deterred in putting forward a workable solid waste management strategy in the Strip.
The sewage disposal problem is assuming alarming proportions. The Gaza Strip’s sewage service networks cover most areas, except for Khan Yunis and its eastern villages where only 40% of the governorate is covered. There are only three sewage water treatment stations in Gaza Strip – in Beit Lahia, Gaza city and Rafah – which are unable to cope with the increasing population growth rate. The total quantity of produced sewage water is estimated at 45 million m3 per annum, in addition to 3000 cubic meters of raw sewage sludge discharged from Gaza Strip directly into the sea every day. Sewage water discharge points are concentrated on the beaches of Gaza city, Al Shate’ refugee camp and Deir El Balah.
The continuous discharge of highly contaminated sewage water from Gaza Strip in the Mediterranean shores is causing considerable damage to marine life in the area. The beaches of Gaza City are highly polluted by raw sewage. In addition, groundwater composition in Gaza Strip is marked by high salinity and nitrate content which may be attributed to unregulated disposal of solid and liquid wastes from domestic, industrial and agricultural sources. The prevalent waste management scenario demands immediate intervention of international donors, environmental agencies and regional governments in order to prevent the situation from assuming catastrophic proportions.
Used cooking oil is one of the major sources of biofuel. As the push for alternative sources of energy is enhanced, biofuel production has also gone into high gear. As such, it has moved from the unsustainable food sources to more sustainable sources such as used cooking oil.
With the adoption of used cooking oil as a source of biofuel, producers have gained numerous benefits. Here are a few.
Cheap to procure
One of the major benefits of used cooking oil as a source of biofuels is that it is cheap to procure. Sources of used cooking oil abound, and they are happy to have it offloaded off their homes and their premises.
Most times, you will find that those that have the used cooking oil will pay to have it taken away from them. As such, hotels and restaurants and even households pay biofuel companies to collect it from their premises.
This makes the process of collecting used cooking oil efficient and affordable. This is a huge first step in the recycling of used cooking oil into biofuel.
Easy to process
Once the used cooking oil arrives at the processing center, it passes through a chemical process that converts the used cooking oil to biofuel.
The process is easy and uses easily available reagents. This process eliminates all the impurities within the used cooking oil. It is a five-stage chemical process that culminates in the conversion of used cooking oil into a useful biofuel.
Environmentally friendly
Another benefit derived from used cooking oil as a biofuel, is the fact that it is environmentally friendly. Biofuels produced from used cooking oil can replace fossil fuel diesel in a world ravaged by global warming. It burns efficiently and thus has almost zero emissions that can be harmful to the environment.
Further, converting the used cooking oil into biodiesel goes a long way in ensuring that the environment is clean. When poorly disposed of, used cooking oil cause untold harm to the environment and drainage infrastructure.
Used in a myriad of diesel machines
Biofuel from used cooking oil can easily replace diesel in vehicles and plant machinery. After processing, the resulting biofuel can easily replace diesel in numerous existing machines and vehicles. Many of these machines will not need any re calibration for them to use this fuel.
The use of used cooking oil biofuel will thus save money for the users and also help them reduce their impact on the environment. Company trucks and plant machinery that use diesel can easily switch to biofuels and companies will see a significant savings in their fuel expense as well.
Can be used to manufacture diverse products
Used cooking oil when recycled is not limited only to the production of biofuels. Rather, it can be used to produce a range of other products and materials that could be a significant business unit.
Used cooking oil can be processed into raw materials for animal and pet feeds. Used cooking oil contains high amounts of protein that will beneficial in animal feed.
Further, used cooking oil can be used to make soap, lubricants and many other useful products.
With these other products, companies that process used cooking oil have a range of products to get to the market to ensure that they remain afloat profitably.
Alternative source of energy for small businesses
Many small businesses have adopted the use of biofuel that is produced from recycled used cooking oil. This helps them save on high energy costs by using it to power some of the processes that use electricity and other expensive sources of energy.
Conclusion
There are many biofuel producing companies that use used cooking oil as part of their raw materials. I have outlined why it is beneficial not only to biofuel producers, but also to the end users of the biofuel that comes from it.
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